That’s been the reaction to most of my life.
High school dropout. World-famous DJ. Got banned from the US. Went bankrupt. Built a multi-million dollar tech company. Hypnotized 5000+ people on stage. Wrote 4 books. Took on climate change because why the hell not.
Now? I’m chasing serendipity instead of goals. Waiting to be in the room when something impossible becomes inevitable.
350+ articles and 7 years of figuring this out in public are here if you want them. So is my story.
I still wrestle with feeling like I don’t know anything. I think it will always be with me. Like, my biggest financial success was creating some technology, yet put me in a room with a bunch of tech people as they throw terms around I don’t know and I feel like a moron. Part of it is because I went about it in a very unique way. I remember watching a food documentary, watching these...
I remember years ago coming across some “diploma mill” that would give you a degree or something for little effort (and a lot of money), and one of the things they’d give you a lot of credit for was “life experience”. At the time I thought that was the biggest joke in the world. Now, in that specific case, it was a joke because they were just using it as a way to...
There’s a simple trait I’ve seen amongst successful entrepreneurs, and it seems to separate those that achieve from those that just dream: Taking Action. From first hand experience and observation, those simple 2 words seems to make the difference. Taking Action means just do it, just go for it, just start it. Whatever your business is, do it. It does not mean “find more busy...
When working alone as a solopreneur, one of the key components you will have to figure out is how to automate as much as possible. Otherwise it turns into a real grind, and you are spending way too long doing manual things. Automation can take many forms and you’ll build them specific to your business needs. Here are some that I’ve personally done, to give you some ideas. 1) An email...
Lifestyle Business is a term I’ve learned recently that would apply to pretty much everything I’ve ever done. I didn’t build businesses to grow exponentially, or to be sold off, or to plan for exits. I built businesses to provide for me the lifestyle I wanted. As long as it was doing that, then it was a success. It’s also a whole lot more stress free. In general Lifestyle...
For a long time I struggled with acknowledging that I was having success in my life, but the way I achieved it, in a completely unorthodox fashion, always left me feeling like I faked my way to it. I recently came up with the correct word to describe myself and how I did this: Audacious. When I look up the definition of that word I get: Showing a willingness to take surprisingly bold risks. When...
There’s a great business metaphor featured in the book Blue Oceans Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne. The gist is: Find “Blue Oceans” to operate a business in, free from competition. Avoid the bloody “Red Oceans” where everyone is fighting it out. As you develop business ideas and markets, keep this in mind. The best and easiest thing to do is: don’t...
I didn’t follow a conventional education path. In fact, I went straight into the workforce after high school. However, my education never stopped. I enjoy reading and learning. As I’ve gotten older, I actually read more, because I’ve realized you can never stop learning and I benefit from it. Choosing an entrepreneurial life, I’ve never had to write a resume. I’ve...
I was just recently introduced to the concept of being “authentic”. As soon as I heard it, it really struck me. I realized immediately I have been a master of “Fake It Till You Make It”. It did work for me, quite successfully, many times in my life. I can’t even speak against that as a strategy. Certainly when you are starting out. But I’m in a different place...
When speaking to people today starting out their businesses, one of the pieces of advice I will generally give is that this is going to take longer than you thought or hoped for. My rule of thumb, based on my own experiences, is that you better be committed to seeing it through for 3 years. Three years to figure out your market, grow the business to something that can support your goal of success...
This was originally posted at my DJ site, anabolic-frolic.com. StealthSeminar, a webinar software company I co-founded in 2010, just celebrated its users generating over 1 billion dollars (USD) using the platform. What’s more amazing is that the software that I created and has been used by over 20 million people owes its existence to my DJ past, and specifically technology I created to host the...
As I embark on the next chapter of my life, one where I hope to help others like me, I’ve realized we are all unique. I will share my story, and hope it might inspire others, but there is no following in my foot steps. There is no secret formula. And certainly there are no short cuts. And that is OK. The quicker this is learned, the better. Prepare for the hard work. Prepare for things...
In hindsight, I am so glad I was unable to access debt or credit during my struggling years. At the time I wished I could, I thought it would make my life easier. I see now it would have set a trap that would have been very difficult to get out of. It forced me to be resourceful. Because I couldn’t just charge something to a credit card, I had to come up with other solutions. When...
There’s a quote, attributed to Jim Rohn, that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. I’ve only recently become familiar with that quote, but realized it has come to play with me many times over my life. Often as I’ve started new ventures, as I was immersed in it, the people I was around were also in that world. We all fed off each other. As each of us...
Here is a link to a TED Talk from Tim Ferris that I found quite helpful. Instead of “Goal Setting”, Tim talks about “Fear Setting”. I used his literal exercise outlined in this video to help break some of my inertia I was dealing with in my life. Inertia from fear. I was paralyzed from making any changes and was suffering because of it. I worked it out, and that enabled me...
Years ago I came up with a “Freedom 35” goal. Basically, I calculated what my monthly nut was (all of my expenses) and would consider myself “free” if I had reliable automatic recurring income that met or exceeded that number. Not including work I had to go actually do (like gigs). 1 month before my 36th birthday, I crossed that line. That was a great day. However, at the...
As an adult, your life grows much more insular and you generally don’t get many opportunities to meet new people. The last big period of my life meeting new people was during my DJ days. I connected with so many people through a shared passion for the music and the scene. But that period ended, and everyone went on their own ways. As I worked on new things, I would connect with people that...
There’s a few stories from history of early explorers literally burning their ships, so that there was no way to go home, and the men were then committed to success or die. I realized as part of my story, I had done a figurative “burning of the ship” as I embarked on new business ventures. I purposely avoided getting a job, or any other work, other than attempt at building my...
If you’re struggling, it’s easy to come up with a list of people or things to blame for your lack of success. “I blame my parents” “I blame the economy” “I blame The Man” “I blame my debt” “I blame society” “I blame Trump” etc… I’m not even going to disagree with any of those statements as they apply...
One thing that has saved my ass over and over again is whenever I’ve had a business idea I’ve always worked it on “on paper” first. I usually use Excel. Back in my music promoting days, every event I ever planned I calculated in Excel. I still have all my old files and they are interesting to review. There is no “rocket science” about them, but they track all...
I like setting goals. Measurable and achievable ones. I also like having fun with them. If I can turn them into a game, even better. A tool I’ve used multiple times is the “money thermometer”. The same kind that you see charities use to show their fundraising. They are used a lot because they are clear and it is fun to watch rise. I’ve done these types of thermometers for...
There’s a quote I’m quite fond of. I did some research online to figure out where it came from and saw it attributed to several people, so I don’t know where it came from first. But here is my version of it: There are three types of people in this world. The first make things happen. The second watch things happen and the third say “What the hell just happened?”...
Below is a story that’s been around since the 1960s, and has been adapted many times. I first read it in Timothy Ferris’ 4 Hour Workweek book. I like the story quite a bit and think of it often and how it can relate to my life. For the last 20 years or so I’ve worked from home on my various businesses. I’ve resisted changing things up too much. Choosing to live the life I...
For a long time I spent what I had. Whatever that was in the bank, or laying around, that was what I had. As I watched those numbers dwindle, I’d try and cut my spending down. But in the end, there really was no plan or strategy. It’s also a fallacy to believe just because you have little to no money, that you are spending that money wisely. I guarantee if you have little money, with...
Young entrepreneurs have an advantage you lose later in life – time. I can clearly remember being around 20 years old, and making a decision to pursue my music passion, knowing I could spend a couple of years on it and see where it goes. I ended up sleeping on the floor of my small office for 2 years, poor, trying to make something happen. A lifetime later, I simply couldn’t make that...